"I did flyers," said Rawcliffe, a retiree who is active in the Boy Scouts. "I did mailers. I went door-to-door. I got my base out. The low turnout is disappointing."

"It's difficult to generate interest in government these days," he said. "But I hope I can get everything done I'm interested in ... in one term."

Town Clerk Pamela Labonte faced no opposition; neither did Moderator Robert Francis, who has served in that post for 33 years.

Labonte was tallying write-in votes late Monday night. There were no candidates for a library trustee or Planning Board term.

Rawcliffe joins the Board of Selectmen, succeeding Leslie Dakin Jr., who opted not to seek a third term. Dakin was noted for his low-key approach to resolving difficult issues and supporting preservation projects, such as the Perry Hill Church restoration.

Rawcliffe, meanwhile, said he remains serious about placing a library in the Parting Ways Building once Acushnet police move into a new station at Middle Road.

Rawcliffe said he would be willing to round up volunteers to make Parting Ways ready for a library, an idea he advanced last week as a way to reduce project expenses and as an alternative to the planned move of the library to the Marie S. Howard Community Center on Middle Road.